Thoughts about life, the universe and everything.

music

On Saturday night I was in the audience for the Monash University Choral Society’s Music Through Time concert. It was fantastic.

Each time I go to one of these I’m reminded of why I keep going. It’s so wonderful to watch friends and other choir members perform songs I know they’ve been working hard on all semester and seeing them having fun whilst doing so. The songs alternately moved me, roused me and entertained me. As I said to a few people after the concert, they all “gave me feels” and it was awesome.

MonUCS introduced me to songs I hadn’t heard before and to new arrangements of old favourites. They sang songs ranging from 12th-century classical through the centuries to 20th-century jazz and pop/alternative, right to 21st-century pieces. There were whole-choir pieces, sung acapella and with accompaniment, as well as solo and small-group works, and pieces with all of these.

Some of the pieces we were treated to included (but were not limited to): Gloria Ad Modum Tubae (Dufay Guillaume) – whole choir piece; Say Love If Ever Thou Didst Find (John Dowland) – a lovely quintet performance; Jesu, Meine Freude (J. S. Bach); Jerusalem (Parry);an SATB version of Bohemian Rhapsody (Queen); a well-carried and embodied Affirmation (Savage Garden); The Longest Time – with a fine tenor melody; finishing with a rousing Sing! (Pentatonix). I’ve taken the title of this review from a lyric of the latter.

Of course, it ended with the after-party, singing more songs until some of us were a bit hoarse, snacking and chatting and playing games, well into the wee hours of the morning.

The next few weeks have a few lovely choral evenings open if you’re in Melbourne.

Firstly, this week, MonUCS (Monash University Choral Society) are performing two shows for their “Music Through Time” event. “Join MonUCS as we take you on a musical journey through time in this whirlwind tour of choral music from the 12th century all the way to the 21st.”
Friday 18th (7:30PM_ and Saturday 19th (7:00PM) – get your tickets here: https://www.eventbrite.com.au/e/music-through-time-concert-tickets-45288554285?aff=efbneb
Facebook event here: Music Through Time
I’ve heard good things about it and I can’t wait to see all their hard work paying off. 😀

Then, next week, LaTUCS are having our concert on Thursday 24th May at 7PM. 😀 It’s going to be lovely, we’ve got songs from across the world in different languages to sing to you. We’ve called it, “Language of the Soul”. Facebook event here: https://www.facebook.com/events/586094155090992/

Come along and be entertained and delighted. There’ll be something for everyone, so spread the word!

MIV2018 was a blast. So much fun. I challenged myself in a few ways, participating in different social events in ways I hadn’t done during my last IV. Here’s an idea: participation pays off. I had a really good time and even won a few times at different social things – which I was not expecting. Participation would have been prize enough. Enthusiasm leads to fun!

I’m not going to lie, it was full-on. IVs always are, especially the first half. Rehearsals for six hours a day, then social events in the evenings. This time, being Social Secretary, a part of me was always busy – mentally or physically – making sure things were running smoothly. By the end of the day, I was quite tired and rather “peopled out” – unusual for me!

I loved organising the social events though. I really like being (one of) the host(s) and seeing people having fun, making new friends and participating – like I said above, it all pays off.

The rehearsals were really good – we had a really good conductor who engaged us well. Patrick Burns got us – or at least me – thinking about the music in particular ways and working together to produce the desired quality sound. We had sectionals where our assistant conductor Leonard Weiss worked with Pat and us in two halves – sopranos and altos in one group, tenors and basses in the other.

One thing I love about rehearsing and performing in big choral groups is the journey from a diverse group of voices just starting to learn the music, to a cohesive group who’ve learnt their parts and sound confident and powerful. It’s bloody fantastic and with IVs, the process only takes ten days! I remember the first time we started feeling really cohesive (for me) – I was singing along as we ran through a piece. I heard the rest of us singing and realised, “This is going to be a great performance.”

I was right. 🙂

We sang really well, if I do say so myself. We heard great audience feedback afterwards too. It was a real treat to sing the pieces – I don’t know if I can pick a favourite, but all have taken turns popping up in my head since.

Thanks, MIV2018.

A quick snap before we go on-stage…

At the Aquademic Dinner…. every bit as good as I hoped.

Womble rehearsing….and keeping away thirst.

That’s one big crocodile…

Opening Night.

Card games on a free camp evening.

Delicious main meal at Aquademic Dinner….

….and the drums.

Shadowy fish….

Dessert at Aquademic Dinner….

Was this during my Toast? Or when I retold the punchline of my joke? Hmmm.

Relaxing on the free camp evening.

A well-earned drink at the post-concert party. 😉

Womble at MIV.

Signatures from most if not all MIV registrants.

Womble investigates the pool.

Dance o’clock… Nifty decoration hanging in the hall.

Aaaalll the colours! The purply-white one is a unicorn fish or rhino fish, something like that. All so pretty!

Womble and ukulele/guitar (idk which!)….

Womble checks out the rehearsal piano…

Womble with music score and songbook.

Womble tries out the conductor’s chair…

Entree at Aquademic Dinner….

When you’re trying to take a photo and someone takes a photo of you….

We brought these decorations in. I like them.

Colourful coral in the fish tank

(Click on the pic for a caption – they’re not in date order, just for fun.)

In six days at time of publishing, the Melbourne Intervarsity Choral Festival 2018 opens. There’s such a lot planned. Rehearsals during the day, social events most nights. I’m excited and have been putting in place the finishing touches for my portfolio: I’m Social Secretary so I’m n charge of the fun.

Over 100 people are going to converge on our venues for the festival. As I was writing this post yesterday evening, I realised that it was pretty much a week to the hour until my first event starts. Eep! 😀

It’s not all just games, traditions and fun. Over ten days we’re learning several pieces to then perform on Saturday 20th January at 19:30. Get your tickets now!! I’d love to see as many of my Melbournian (is that word supposed to have no ‘o’?) and Victorian friends as possible at the concert. It is going to be bloody amazing I can already feel it.

“MIV 2018 is proud to present Light the Dark, a moving musical programme offering hope in a time of global turmoil and upheaval.

The concert features Vaughan Williams’ Toward the Unknown Region, Brahms’ Alto Rhapsody, Parry’s I Was Glad and the jewel in the crown, Elgar’s Light of Life. Conducted by Patrick Burns, featuring reknowned soloists Liane Keegan, Andrew Goodwin, Anna-Louise Cole, Raphael Wong and accompanied by the Melbourne Opera Orchestra, this concert will be a once-in-a-lifetime performance, and we hope that you will join us as we make history in the glorious Melbourne Town Hall.”

Would you do me a massive favour, especially if you’re reading this from a Melbourne or Victorian address (and/or through my Facebook) and “share the Dickens” (as one of my friends, a co-convenor, put it) out of this link? Even if you can’t go, pass the information along in case someone else in your circle might want to. Thanks heaps! I hope to see you at the concert – or at MIV, if you’re an IVer reading this.

*makes excited noise*

P.S. Take care of yourselves weather-wise! In Victoria, the next couple of days are scorchers, with more to follow later in the week (I’m very glad of aircon with MIV!). Meanwhile, in the US there’s a hell of a snow event happening atm, I gather. So yeah. Stay safe!

It’s that time of year again, where I compile a list of songs that mattered to me this year.

1. Think of Meryl Streep (from FAME!) – due to a powerful political moment by Meryl Streep at the start of the year that I blogged about then.

2. Bread and Roses (and maybe also Power in a Union). First one is a folk song, the second is by Billy Bragg. They reference the Women’s March and surrounding politics.

The next are a bunch of love songs that speak to me. I first listened to them on Triple J and they remind me of feelings I felt then and feel now.

3. Thinking Out Loud (Ed Sheeran)

4. Say My Name (Tove Stryke)

5. I Want Something Just Like This (The Chainsmokers)

The next one is one of a bunch I heard when watching my first Eurovision Party this year.

6. Eurovision 2017:

Running on Air (Nathan Trent)

Lights and Shadows (O’G3NE)

Origo (Joci Pápai)

Where I Am (Anja)

My Friend (Jacques Houdek)

Grab the Moment (JOWST)

Story of My Life (Naviband)

Beautiful Mess (Kristian Kostov)

I Feel Alive (IMRI)

Yodel It (Alex Florea & Ilinca)

Gravity (Hovig)

Fly with Me (Artsvik)

Flashlight (Karsia Moś)

Amar pelos dois (Salvador Sobral)

City Lights (Blanche)

Don’t Come Easy (Isaiah)

Never Give Up on You (Lucie Jones)

Next are some from the concerts of the year:

7. Te Deum (from the MonUCS May concert, Choral Icons). First time I’d heard this song and I still remember it well. From the same concert, other standouts included Five Eyes and Vivaldi’s Gloria.

8. Peace/ EquipYourself for Life, Pink Telegram, 0808, and other songs from the John Monash Peace Cantata – a highlight of the year and one I’m proud to have participated in. My only regret is that uni prevents me from participating in the overseas performance next year.

9. Pirates of Penzance (from MonUCS’ performance). I find myself humming songs from the production at times still. I’m not singling out any because they were all very good.

10. Finally, Christmas songs. This year, those include adapted versions of Winter Wonderland and White Christmas as for once they were almost appropriate. As well as “Green Book Carols”, from MIV carolling hugs and LaTUCS’ carols performance. Also the Vaughn Williams’ piece, Fantasia on Christmas Carol. I was reminded of the piece at the start of December and realised that I really had had a good year, as the last part of the piece hoped.

There might be more, but I think ten is a good starting point! Happy New Year everyone. I’m currently finishing this on a plane that’ll land back in Australia from Japan in a bit under an hour. I’ll post this then.

Keep an eye out for the rest of the Japan Trip posts this week and I hope you have a good year ahead of you. I reckon I do, but I know it’ll be busy too. MIV2018 starts on the 11th after all…

Last Saturday’s concert from MonUCS (Monash University Choral Society) was really good. It had fun pieces and grand pieces and carols. An organ accompanied some songs.

Their opening piece (Regina Coeli from Cavalleria Rusticana by Pietro Mascagni) began with quite the entrance. The choir walked in two columns between the audience seats in order to get to the front of the church to perform from. I thought that was pretty cool.

There were the pieces I hadn’t heard before, sung with vocal strength and expression. Operatic choruses which were gorgeous to listen to and surprising, emotional and sweet by turns. Some of these pieces had soloists – all of whom performed very well. These pieces included the Priest’s Chorus (from Die Zauberflote), Chorus of Enchanted Islanders (from Alcina), Dido’s Lament and Final Chorus (from Dido and Aenea) and even a humming one, Humming Chorus (from Madame Butterfly).

I thoroughly enjoyed myself as I watched my friends perform after weeks of hard work. I also enjoyed singing along to some of the carols as we were encouraged to do – though only at mezzo piano volume so as to hear the actual choir. The carols were not all your usual fare – in fact, two of them I only knew thanks to the carolling gigs last week. That made it all the more fun. Carols included Infant Holy Infant Lowly, Zither Carol, Gloucestershire Wassail and others.

The choir were balanced beautifully, each section blending well (the ultimate goal) while holding their own parts in a superb manner. Each section also had its chance to shine, enabled by the range of songs chosen. For example, it was noted that the tenors sang “without hesitation … and with a wonderful lightness” as one friend put it. The altos were the smallest section of the four, but it didn’t feel like it. The basses carried the bottom range as they are supposed to, giving strength and resonance, while the sopranos were glorious on top.

Bravo, MonUCS! I look forward to seeing what you’ll do next year – and to singing with some of you at MIV. Well done!

Writing this quickly before I head off to my last choir night of the year.

I’ll write a review of the concert I attended on Saturday (MonUCS’ “ORGANic Christmas”) tomorrow. I want to do it justice and time slipped by me today. In part because less sleep last night from a choir holiday party combined with the afternoon sun on a 37*C day is not conducive to productivity, I think. XD

Choir parties are the best – always great food and conversation with lovely welcoming people. Last night’s one had Karaoke even!

Carolling with MIV – and at LaTUCS’ own gig – has been really lovely this year. My favourite carols are a lot more complex now than the favourites I had when younger and it’s really nice to perform them with friends.

There are still a few chances to see the MIV carollers in the lead-up to Christmas, but I won’t be among them.

As of next Monday, I’m off to Japan on a family holiday until the New Year. I will try to keep you more-or-less abreast of our journey with the help of Womble again I make no promises as to when any updates will occur though.

Must dash to LaTUCS now….

Remember to buy concert tickets to see the MIV choir with soloists and orchestra perform on January 20th (less than ONE MONTH to go!!): Facebook event here and tickets here. Monday was spent getting decorations for MIV with other committee friends…. I’m getting excited now.

Yesterday, my choir (LaTUCS) sang carols at an end-of-year event at uni. Nice and I’m hopeful it’ll lead to further opportunities.

This weekend (starting this evening) I will be a-carolling with MIV2018 people. Tomorrow afternoon too. Our concert tickets for the end-of-festival performance are on sale now. Put the evening of the 20th of January 2018 in your calendars (Facebook link here – friends should expect invites shortly) and get some tickets via this link.

Also, MIV merchandise sales close on Monday, December 11th – this coming Monday which also happens to be the one-month-out date! Wow. If you want a tie-dye tote bag, a keepcup, promise of concert CD and participant photo, or tickets to the “Aquademic” Dinner, please head on over to miv.org.au, sign up for an account on the website and buy the things you want.

This weekend has other fun apart from carols. Tomorrow evening I’m attending a choir concert by MonUCS. Can’t wait – the program sounds really good. 😀 Here is a link to the Facebook event and click here for tickets (or get them at the door). Hooray!